Spring loaded railway hopper car door

ABSTRACT

A hopper door of the bottom opening type for a railway hopper car is spring loaded to assist in closing the door. The spring reacts between and is guided by telescoping shaft and cylinder members pivotally connected to the car body and door, respectively. The pivotal connection between the cylinder member and the car body is offset from the longitudinal axis of the spring so that a closing force is applied to the door by the spring when the door is in open position.

United States Patent 91 Floehr 1 Jan. 23, 1973 SPRING LOADED RAILWAY HOPPER CAR DOOR [75] Inventor: Walter L. Floehr, Toledo, Ohio [73] Assignee: Midland-Ross Corporation, Cleveland, Ohio [22] Filed: July 21,1970

211 Appl. No.: 56,927

[52] US. Cl. ..105/253, 16/72, 49/386, 105/284, 105/286, 105/311 [51] lnt. Cl. ..B6ld 7/18, B61d 7/26, B61d 43/00 [58] Field of Search ..105/214, 251, 284, 253, 286, 105/311 R; 267/60; 16/72, 80; 49/386 [5 6] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Ortner ..105/284 1,963,891 6/1934 DeForrest Driver ..267/60 X 2,124,087 7/1938 Smith ..267/60 X 2,478,608 8/1949 Tillman ..105/244 2,650,386 9/1953 Edwards ..16/72 X Primary ExaminerDrayton E. Hoffman Assistant Examiner-Howard Beltran Attorney-Henry Kozak and Woodrow W. Portz [57] ABSTRACT A hopper door of the bottom opening type for a railway hopper car is spring loaded to assist in closing the door. The spring reacts between and is guided by telescoping shaft and cylinder members pivotally connected to the car body and door, respectively. The pivotal connection between the cylinder member and the car body is offset from the longitudinal axis of the spring so that a closing force is applied to the door by the spring when the door is in open position.

5 Claims, 2 Drawing Figures PATENTEU JAN 2 3 I975 HIIII IN VENT OR. WITUL FLOEHE SPRING LOADED RAILWAY HOPPER CAR DOOR BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION It is desirable in connection with hopper cars equipped with manually operated drop bottom hopper doors to provide means for facilitating closing of the doors. The present invention employs a spring means acting against the car underframe and the hopper door to urge the door upwardly toward closed position. It is essential that the mechanism operate smoothly and without any binding of the parts during opening and closing of the doors which otherwise may become difficult, if not impossible, to operate.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The invention comprises the provision of a spring guide arrangement for a pivoted drop bottom hopper door of a hopper car, which assures smooth pivotal movement of the door from open to closed position. The spring guide arrangement includes a shaft member which is telescopically received in a cylinder member. Movement of the shaft member inwardly of the cylinder member is resisted by means of a coil spring which is compressed between seats provided on the members. The shaft member is pivotally connected to the door while the cylinder member is pivotally connected to the car underframe. The pivot axis of the cylinder member is so disposed in relation to the spring seat thereon that the force of the spring acts in such a direction relative to the pivot hinge of the door as to apply a closing force against the door when it is in dropped or open position. Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a spring guide arrangement for a drop bottom pivoted hopper door which affords substantial bearing surfaces between telescoping members and which provides a closing force against the door when the latter is in open position.

The foregoing and other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a longitudinal view partly in section of hopper car doors embodying the invention;

FIG. 2 is a detail of the elements of the spring guide assembly for the doors shown in FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to the drawings, the hopper car comprises a center sill extending lengthwise of the car and transverse frame members 12 and 14 which extend between sill 10 and side sills of the car to form openings therebetween at the bottom of the car. One of such openings 16 is shown with hopper doors l8 hinged at their upper ends to members 12 and 14. Hinge brackets 20 for receiving pivot pins 22 for mounting the doors are secured to members 12 and 14. It will be evident that the doors will swing by gravity from the upper or closed position to the lower or open position as shown. Suitable locking mechanism as shown at 23 may be employed to secure the doors in closed position.

A bracket 24 is affixed to each door 18 at the end thereof opposite from the pivot pin 22. Secured to bracket 24 is a pivot pin receiving lug 26 which is suitably spaced from the plane of the door. Another pivot pin receiving lug 28 is secured to the underside of sill 10. Disposed between and pivotally connected to lugs 26 and 28 is the spring guide assembly S for controlling the opening and closing movements of the door.

Assembly S comprises a shaft or plunger-like member 30, a cylinder or plunger receiving member 32 and a coil spring 34. Shaft member 30 is provided at one end with an opening 30a passing through the axis of the shaft for receiving a pin 31 for pivotal attachment of the member to lug 26. Adjacent the pivot end of member 30 there is secured a spring seat 30b having a cylindrical boss 30c which is received within the coils of spring 34 to position and retain the spring end on the seat. Cylinder member 32 comprises a cylindrical element 32a for receiving shaft 30 in slidable relationship. The clearance between shaft 30 and the inner surface of element 32a is sufficiently close as to provide adequate guiding action between the engaging surfaces during relative movement of the shaft and cylinder members. Secured to element 320 is spring seat 32b comprising a cylindrical boss 32c of substantial length which is received within the coils of spring 34 to assure proper positioning and guiding of the spring. At one end of member 32 there is an arm 32d which extends laterally to one side of the member. Arm 32d has a pivot pin opening 32e offset from the longitudinal axis of cylindrical element 32a. It will be observed that opening 32a is disposed a substantial distance from the axis of element 320 for a purpose which will be hereinafter explained. Member 32 is pivotally attached to hinge lug 28 by means of pin 36 received in opening 32c.

In the closed position of the door, as shown in the right side of FIG. 1, spring 34 is under predetermined compression between seats 30b and 32b. In this position of the door, spring force F applies a closing force to the door acting at a substantial moment arm m about the pivot pin 22. During the opening of the door, shaft member telescopes into element 32a, thus further compressing spring 34. When the door is in open position as shown in the left side of FIG. 1, spring 34 is compressed the maximum amount. Oversolid compression of the spring is prevented by the engagement between the opposing end surfaces 30d and 32f on the shaft and cylinder members, respectively. In the open position of the door, the spring force F is exerted at a moment arm m about pivot pin 22. It will be noted that moment arm m, while shorter than moment arm m, is still of appreciable length. The force of the spring acting at arm m provides a substantial assist at the beginning of manual closing of the door. Moment arm m is produced by the substantial offset relationship of spring seat 32b relative to pivots 36 and 22.

The telescopic relationship between shaft 30 and element 32a provides for smooth guiding action between these parts during opening and closing of the doors. This feature is particularly advantageous when the door is in open position and it is desired to close the door. The shaft 30 and inner surface of element 32a provide a large area of contact between these parts which avoids any binding therebetween. Shaft 30 and element 32a are of substantial length, and when the door is in open position, the forward end of the shaft is disposed adjacent the inner end of element 32a.

To facilitate application of the spring guide assembly to the door, openings 40 and 41 in the shaft and cylinder members, respectively, are provided. These openings are so located that they are in registry at a point corresponding to the position of the door intermediate its open and closed positions. A pin may be inserted through the openings, when they are in registry, to secure the members in such position. The assembly may then conveniently be applied to or removed from the door and car frame.

What is claimed is:

1. in a railway hopper car, the combination of a drop bottom door hinged at its upper end for swinging movement about a horizontal pivot axis, said door being disposed at an incline when in closed position and swingable downwardly to open position, and spring guide means disposed on the outer side of said door for urging the door toward closed position, said means comprising an upper member pivoted to the car frame structure, a lower member pivoted to the lower end of said door, said upper member comprising a hollow cylindrical element of substantial length having attachment means at one end thereof extending laterally to one side of the element, a spring seat on said element centered relative to the axis of the element, said attachment means being pivotally attached at its lateralmost end to the car frame structure so as to offset said element and spring seat in a direction away from the outer side of said door, said lower member comprising a shaft slidably received in said element, the outer end of the shaft being pivoted to said door, and a spring seat on said shaft centered relative to the axis of the shaft, and a coil spring compressible between said seats, said seats being so positioned relative to the pivot axis of said door as to prevent the line of force of said spring from passing through the pivot axis of said door and the pivots of said upper and lower members during movement of the door from closed to open position, said attachment means so disposing said seat on said upper member relative to the pivot axis of said door that the line of force of said spring against the door acts at substantial moment arm relative to said door pivot axis throughout the movement of the door from closed to open position.

2. The combination according to claim 1 wherein each spring seat has a cylindrical spring-positioning boss extending toward the opposing spring seat, said bosses being of such longitudinal extent that the end surfaces thereof are spaced apart when the door is in closed position and are adapted to engage each other upon movement of the door to open position to prevent oversolid compression of said spring.

3. The combination according to claim 2 wherein each boss is received within the coils of said spring.

4. A spring guide assembly for spring loading a railway car hopper door of the drop bottom type comprising telescoping shaft'and cylinder members, one of said members being adapted for pivotal attachment to an associated car structure, the other of said members being adapted for pivotal attachment to the door, each of said members having a spring seat affixed thereto, and spring means compressible between said seats, said cylinder member comprising a hollow cylindrical element open at one end and having attachment means at its other end extending laterally to one side of said element, said spring seat on said element b ein disposed on the outer periphery of the element, said a tachment means having a pin-receiving opening at one end thereof disposed a substantial distance laterally of the longitudinal axis of the assembly, said shaft member having a shaft portion extending into the open end of said element and being in slidable relation therewith, the outer end of said shaft portion being adapted for pivotal attachment to the door.

5. A spring guide assembly according to claim 4 wherein each of said spring seats has a spring-positioning boss extending from the seat in a direction longitudinally of the assembly, the end surfaces of said seats being adapted for engagement with each other upon movement of the door from closed to open position to preclude oversolid compression of said spring means. 

1. In a railway hopper car, the combination of a drop bottom door hinged at its upper end for swinging movement about a horizontal pivot axis, said door being disposed at an incline when in closed position and swingable downwardly to open position, and spring guide means disposed on the outer side of said door for urging the door toward closed position, said means comprising an upper member pivoted to the car frame structure, a lower member pivoted to the lower end of said door, said upper member comprising a hollow cylindrical element of substantial length having attachment means at one end thereof extending laterally to one side of the element, a spring seat on said element centered relative to the axis of the element, said attachment means being pivotally attached at its lateralmost end to the car frame structure so as to offset said element and spring seat in a direction away from the outer side of said door, said lower member comprising a shaft slidably received in said element, the outer end of the shaft being pivoted to said door, and a spring seat on said shaft centered relative to the axis of the shaft, and a coil spring compressible between said seats, said seats being so positioned relative to the pivot axis of said door as to prevent the line of force of said spring from passing through the pivot axis of said door and the pivots of said upper and lower members during movement of the door from closed to open position, said attachment means so disposing said seat on said upper member relative to the pivot axis of said door that the line of force of said spring against the door acts at substantial moment arm relative to said door pivot axis throughout the movement of the door from closed to open position.
 2. The combination according to claim 1 wherein each spring seat has a cylindrical spring-positioning boss extending toward the opposing spring seat, said bosses being of such longitudinal extent that the end surfaces thereof are spaced apart when the door is in closed position and are adapted to engage each other upon movement of the door to open position to prevent oversolid compression of said spring.
 3. The combination according to claim 2 wherein each boss is received within the coils of said spring.
 4. A spring guide assembly for spring loading a railway car hopper door of the drop bottom type comprising telescoping shaft and cylinder members, one of said members being adapted for pivotal attachment to an associated car structure, the other of said members being adapted for pivotal attachment to the door, each of said members having a spring seat affixed thereto, and spring means compressible between said seats, said cylinder member comprising a hollow cylindrical element open at one end and having attachment means at its other end extending laterally to one side of said element, said spring seat on said element being disposed on the outer periphery of the element, said attachment means having a pin-receiving opening at one end thereof disposed a substantial distance laterally of the longitudinal axis of the assembly, said shaft member having a shaft portion extending into the open end of said element and being in slidable relation therewith, the outer end of said shaft portion being adapted for pivotal attachment to the door.
 5. A spring guide assembly according to claim 4 wherein each of said spring seats has a spring-positioning boss extending from the seat in a direction longitudinally of the assembly, the end surfaces of said seats being adapted for engagement with each other upon movement of the door from closed to open position to preclude oversolid compression of said spring means. 